His most prized treasure
by Krstee
Summary: FF3DS: LunethxArc: There is no fine line between friendship and love; it is a blatant, spanning mark that is impossible to miss. But when Arc wants to cross that line, he can't find the words to let Luneth know.


AN:  
This story contains what I like to call 'man-love'. While this is not the accepted vernacular for what most would call shounen-ai, I find it much more fun. Regardless, yes, this story contains a male x male relationship between Luneth and Arc. You have been warned. Now here is the real author's note:

I was suddenly stricken with the desire to write a FFIII fanfiction. Only in my mind it started as a one-shot. And now it appears as though it will be multi-chaptered.

I'm not actually certain if anyone reads/writes FFIII fanfictions, actually. And if there are people, I hope they like Luneth/Arc if they are reading this. :

As a side note, all the characters will forever be in their original costumes (or freelancer costumes) regardless of whatever job I choose to give them, solely because I like those costumes the best. Especially Arc's.

Also, this story takes place after the dealings with Sanoria and Prince Alus. Only because that's as far as I am in the game right now.

All joking aside, here is chapter one:  
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Dusk fell heavily on the worn path, shrouding the landscape in a melancholic silence. The occasional disturbances of unsettled birds crying out eventually hushed as the sun continued its descent from its throne in the sky. The colors in the sky perturbed from their constant blue into a wild palette of vivid colors, all merging together in different shades and hues. Eventually, even the most unnoticeable sounds of animals-- scurrying between the trees to make it to their hovels before the monsters that lurked through the night came out—ended, leaving the dusty, sepia toned road in momentary peace.

It was during these times of their journey, and only these times, that the group of four could relax without fear of attack to talk and joke freely. For about an hour, they knew they would be safe between the times that the malicious creatures that lurked in the shadows of day would fall asleep and the equally nasty nocturnal creatures began to stir.

Their footfalls crunched against the gritty road; overlain with the dirt that had been stirred up by the numerous carriages traveling over its surface prior in the day. The youngest of the group grimaced as the two in front of him, his best friend and the girl who tormented him endlessly, laughed in unison at some unheard joke. She, with her autumn red hair and dazzling blue eyes that sent Arc retching in disgust. She utilized her femininity without flaw, capable of procuring anything she could ever desire with a mere bat of the eyes.

And as of the moment, what she wanted was Luneth.

Arc scowled at the back of her hair, clenching his fists until the skin that draped over the top of his knuckles turned a pasty white color from the lack of blood circulation. He hated what was the very essence of her. He despised her perfect, luscious pink lips that gave her the false illusion of innocence. He hater her thin, beautifully formed frame. He loather the façade of compassion she put on for the others that she so readily dropped when the two of them were alone, replacing it instead with bitingly malevolent words that she flung at him and his short-comings. He hated that she also knew that he was too reticent to mention anything of her harassment towards him to the others. Most of all, he hated that she was trying to deceive his best friend.

He was knocked out of his internal frustrations by a gentle push on the shoulder. He turned to face the person who had caused the irritation, his face portraying the indignancy he felt for the physical contact. His features smoother when he was met with Ingus' own worried gaze. He stared back, shocked for a moment at the expression he had never seen on Ingus. Certainly he knew the great amount of compassion and loyalty that Ingus carried for the group—it was knight's code to protect those you care for at all costs—but he had never seen Ingus look at him in such a way.

"What's bothering you?"

He asked, not taking his eyes from Arc's own. Arc, never being one for eye-contact with the amount of trust required for doing so, turned away from Ingus to stare at the road directly in front of him, a small blush tinting his cheeks.

"N…Nothing. Why?"

He said, regretting his choice in words directly afterwards. He didn't want to know why or how Ingus had so easily sensed his disdain.

Ingus let out a soft chuckle, turning away from Arc and back towards the road. For a moment, neither said anything to each other, choosing to merely listen to their footfalls and the muffled words that Luneth and Refia shared.

"I've known you for quite some time, yes, Arc?"

Arc flinched when Ingus had finally spoken again, assuming from the long gap in verbalization that the conversation had ended in an abrupt manner.

He looked back at Ingus, nodding and muttering a muffled, affirmative answer. Ingus chuckled, crossing his arms before his chest, both chain-mailed hands grabbing onto the adjacent, equally chain-mailed bicep.

"And in that time, I've never seen you glare at anyone. Even in fights, you are predominantly calm and analytical. Yet now, you send a glare to your own team member. I merely assumed that if you carried such strong feelings, you may wish to share them with someone."

Ingus took a short pause, fixing his eyes back on Arc's.

"If it is too personal, I will understand if you don't wish to discuss. Just please remember that you may always confide in me if you wish."

As he looked back up at the blonde, he couldn't help but smile gently at the knight's own genuine smile.

"Knight's honor."

Ingus said, grinning as he lifted his left hand and ruffled the boy's chestnut brown hair. The action caused Arc to chuckle back, dodging away from Ingus to escape the irritating, yet warm gesture

"We'll set up camp here for the night."

Luneth said after another 30 minutes of travel. It was too dangerous to move any farther at night, and the wearying effects of traveling all day were catching up to the experienced warriors. Luneth turned around to face the rest of the group, making sure there were no disagreements. This small action caused Arc to smile. Even after all this time of leadership he still felt compelled to make sure his decisions were 100 agreed upon. He met only tired smiles and meek head nods, giving him the needed answer. They walked a few feet from the road and into the thicket of trees, searching for a spot large enough to set up their three sleeping bags.

Such a spot was eventually found, and with a camp-fire finally going, the travelers all sat around it. Luneth was the last to join, pulling some bread from his bag for the four to share. He sat down, tearing himself off a piece before passing it to Refia on his right. He sighed contently with the bread still in his mouth, working on unbuckling the straps on his vest for more comfort.

Arc followed suit, taking off his over-coat and folding it at his side, revealing the woolen, butter-yellow long-sleeved garment beneath. Yet it was too soon in the night for any of the travelers to feel comfortable enough to take off their boots. Stray creatures had been known to approach their camp-sites at night, and in those instances, a split-second fight was required. There was no physical feeling worse than fighting without shoes on, as most of them had realized.

"Where to tomorrow?"

Arc questioned, leaning forward and staring into the flames, mesmerized by their endless, fluctuating dance.

"I imagine we'll run into some sort of town. We need some more potions."

Luneth said, propping himself up with his hands and leaning heavily against them.

"Ugh, I hope we find some chocobos. My feet are killing me!"

Refia said, chuckling as she rested her head against her knees.

"We need more food, I know that much. So either hope that we find a town, or we're in for an afternoon of fishing."

Arc scowled at this, his eyes still glued to the fire. While he wouldn't outwardly complain about it—he would never inconvenience the group for any personal reason—he hated fish. The process of acquiring them, cooking them, and their taste were all unfavorable to the youth.

"We could always eat Arc if worst comes to worst."

All eyes turned to Refia as she started chuckling. The other two did the same, gathering it had been a joke. Arc, as overly-sensitive as he was, turned away from the group and to the right; into the unfathomable darkness of the woods. He tried to put on a passive face, but never able to hide his pain or true feelings, his aggravation was easy to see.

"Come on, I was only kidding, Arc. You're too tiny to eat. It'd be more nourishing to eat tree-frogs."

Again, the other three laughed at the slightly-amusing joke. Arc, unwilling to have to defend himself or his action, added in a forced, fake laugh. It was a jest to Ingus and Luneth. But beneath the covers and facetious tone, Refia's words were intentionally insulting. Yet another way she had found the means to call Arc weak in a subtle, unnoticeable manner.

One day, he swore to himself, he would find a way to retort to one of her comments. That day would perhaps come when he had the courage to stand up to her.

"Before we get farther into conversation and forget, what needs to be done in the morning, Luneth?"

Luneth leaned back again, looking thoughtfully towards the starry sky. In that moment, Arc couldn't help but stare unabashed at Luneth. When Luneth was deep in thought, there was something about him that changed—something Arc had never been able to identify. During those times, if he had the chance to observe, Luneth's violet eyes seemed to gleam with some indecipherable foreshadowing of knowledge. His face so solid yet tranquil, he could scarcely determine whether the moment was real or a romanticized dream. His body, it seemed, even loosened, giving him a general-laid back look. While he looked as though he were merely spacing off and allowing his mind to wander, he would come back only moments later, those same, piercing eyes looking directly at who had asked him to think, and give the exact answer to those questions.

Arc often wished that he could one day warrant that look upon himself.

As it stood, when Luneth had finished thinking, his eyes were fixed of Ingus,

"One person will need to locate a river and fill our canteens and supply of herbs, another will be needed to sharpen the weapons, and the other two will, as you mentioned, will need to go fishing."

He said with a tone of authority. His eyes flicked away from Ingus and back towards the sky for a moment,

"Refia, you'll need to be one of the people who go fishing."

Refia nodded at this, understanding the reason behind his decision. She was the white-magic user of the group, specialized solely in healing spells and a few weak offensive spells. It would be foolish for her to be too far separated from any other members of the group.

"Ingus, you have the most experience with weapons, so I'll entrust that task to you."

Again, another nod,

"Arc, would you rather go fishing with Refia or look for clean water and herbs?"

Arc looked up from the entrancing flames and stared at Luneth. There were a few qualities that disallowed him to answer the question. First was his natural reticence, then came his indecisive demeanor, and this was all topped by his desire to stay on the side-lines and not cause trouble for anyone else.

He knew what he wanted to choose. Anything that would distance himself from Refia was good news from himself. She'd probably even thank him for the alone-time he would be granting her with Luneth. Try as he might to summon the courage, it wouldn't come, and he didn't answer.

He looked back at the fire, ashamed at himself. Why could he just say a few small words? They certainly wouldn't hurt anyone. The prevailing fear that he had grown up with gripped him again. There was always the 'what if?'. What if they laughed at what he said? What if he was asked to justify his choice? Perhaps had he not been so teased as a child by the other children in town, the words would've flown easily from his mouth. But instead, for fear of making the wrong choice and shrugged, muttering a soft 'whichever' under his breath.

Nothing could make him look up after the passive response, for he knew how Luneth would be looking at him. It was the look Luneth seemed to save solely for him, the same look that made him wish he was someone else. Someone who at least deserved that look. It occurred whenever Arc reverted back to his old ways. Not sticking up for himself, avoiding conflict no matter the personal harm it caused him, putting others before him, refusing to talk about his problems, and all those pathetic things Arc did that he couldn't stop himself from doing. And then Luneth would look at him with such pity; some caring form of pity that couldn't hide his irritation. It is often said that sometimes a person's actions can speak louder than any words. And that look said, as clear as day, 'Why, Arc? Don't you realize you're hurting everyone around you?'

He equally knew that Luneth was waiting for him to look up. He wanted Arc to know how disappointed he was in him. The seconds flew by, and the tangible, suffocating awkwardness settled uneasily upon all four of the team, each waiting for some sort of response.

Luneth finally gave up and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose with an index finger and thumb.

"Fine. You go fishing with Refia, I'll look for herbs."

Arc nodded solemnly, not making any other form of movement. He vaguely wondered whether Luneth had specifically given him the job to punish him for his timid response, or lack there of.

It ultimately didn't matter, because things were settled, and although these small, petty tasks weren't written in stone, Arc certainly wasn't about to stand against the decision now.

"If that is all, I'm going to go to sleep, then."

Ingus said, standing up from the camp-fire and walking towards his royal blue sleeping bag. Refia stood up after him, giving a smile and wave to the remaining two.

Arc made a move to follow, but was cut off by Luneth,

"Arc, come on a walk with me."

The invitation, while both abrupt and quite clearly an order, took Arc off guard. As soon as the stern words had fallen from Luneth's lips, Arc froze. He felt every fiber in his heart pumping blood with ever increasing speed and intensity. Luneth was only completely stern when issuing commands in battle or about to give someone a lecture. Seeing as there were no monsters around, Arc could only assume it was the latter. In which case, he was completely terrified.

He stood up rigid, holding his arms to his chest and shivering as he left the warmth of the fire. Luneth looked at him, quirking an eyebrow,

"Don't you want to grab your coat?"

Arc blushed in embarrassment, bending down and grabbing the green garment he had nearly forgotten. He put it in with swift movements, not wanting Luneth to have to wait for him.

Luneth smirked as soon as he was finished, calming Arc's nerves substantially. He walked towards Arc and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, gently directing him forward. As a general rule, Arc both hated and feared physical contact. However, in Luneth's case, it was always a welcome, calming gesture. Luneth had been his best friend for years, and he had been the first and only person to ever gain his trust. With Luneth, he knew that the hugs and other small gestures were sincere and done without any ill-intent.

The two walked slowly and carefully throughout the dark forest, both taking care to not stumble on the roots. Their way was only illuminated by the beams of moon that cast their silvery light on the forest floor beneath them.

As he observed the scenary and remained peacefully content so tightly pressed against Luneth's own side, he forgot the intent of their walk. With this loss, the negative feelings and anxiety were cast aside as well. That was, until Luneth stopped them and turned Arc around to face him,

"Hey, I thought you were done with that."

Luneth asked. It was hard for him to remain mad at Arc. One look from those innocent, timid eyes, and he could scarcely remember why he had even been angry in the first place. Even now, he was forced to make his tone sound harsher to make sure his point was understood.

Arc's smile fell and he looked Luneth in the eyes, the shame clearly returning to him. He didn't waste time pretending to be oblivious as he would've with other people to make them explain exactly what they meant. He easily knew what Luneth meant, yet the answer eluded him.

"I don't know…"

He said, his face down-cast and his eyes glued to his feet,

"I was just… nervous."

Luneth quirked an eyebrow, placing a finger under Arc's smile and pushing his face back to the correct level.

"What could you possibly have felt nervous about?"

Luneth asked, his tone now completely soft and soothing. The tone made Arc cringe. It felt as though he were being reprimanded by a concerned parental figure rather than his best friend. He hated when Luneth used that tone. It was too condescending for Arc. With his face level, he still turned his eyes away from Luneth's,

"I thought,"

He began, but was quickly cut off by Luneth,

"That either someone would laugh at you or tell you that you were wrong?"

Arc felt the familiar stinging sensation in his eyes, but merely nodded, forcing the rush of tears down. Luneth understood him… why he did things. It was both a comfort and an embarrassment. How could he not be embarrassed that he had fallen into the same timid pattern so many repetitious times that Luneth knew exactly why he had done them?

Luneth said, dropping his hand from Arc's face. He couldn't force his friend to look at him,

"Arc…"

He said, sighing as he contemplated the right words to say,

"You can't be so afraid of us. We're a team, you should be able to trust us. Trust that we won't laugh at you or force you to explain the choices you make."

Dronick nodded again, pushing a piece of his chestnut-brown hair behind his ear.

"And don't you ever lie to me again."

Luneth said, his trade-mark smile returning to his face. The same smile that Arc couldn't help but return,

"I know you hate fishing."

Arc chuckled good-naturedly, glad to see that the mood of the conversation had finally changed,

"I hate the taste of fish, too."

"Dually noted."

Luneth responded, taking the chance to admire the way the moon was reflect in Arc's emerald green eyes. Those eyes that tried their hardest to shroud their owner in secrecy from the rest of the world…

"What're you looking at?"

Arc asked after a moment, a bit disturbed by Luneth's glazed-over eyes and constant stare at his own.

Luneth shook his head, sending the silver fringe of bangs to cascade into his face.

"Nothing, I'm just tired."

He said, and after a short pause continued,

"Do you want to switch jobs with me now, then?"

Arc pondered this over for a moment. Did he? It was certainly what he wanted, and it was no being handed to him on a silver platter. But what of the repercussions,

"No. I already said I would fish, and I don't want to seem like I'm backing out of it."

From the way Luneth was staring at Arc, he knew the older male was trying to analyze his exact meaning. Whether or not Arc just didn't want to have to stand up for himself and his choice. Either way, he knew he shouldn't make Arc justify his choice.

"Alright. Just don't forget that I'll always be here to help you, right?"

Luneth said, wrapping his arm back around Arc's shoulder and beginning the short walk back to the camp-site.

As Arc lay in his sleeping-bag, listening to the silent cracks of the fire's last splutters of heat, he smiled to himself. He wasn't certain how a person as shy as he had ever managed to find such a caring, loyal friend as Luneth, but he knew for certain that the bond they both possessed would forever be his most prized treasure.

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This was much longer than I had anticipated. Also, it didn't happen exactly as I had imagined. However, as I 'imagined' would've made the characters extremely out of character.

Which I understand Refia will be extremely out of character. But, the main thing to understand is that this story is from Arc's point of view, and he is accustomed to people bringing him down. And when he finally thinks he has found a safe haven from the torments, Refia has begun to do the same thing. So most of the things she does to him aren't actually horrible, but he interprets them as so. Plus him being over-sensitive doesn't help. But don't consider this explanation too credible, as she still is going to be pretty damn mean to him in these first few chapters. Also, all the 'warriors of the light' are all too damn virtuous. I needed one of them to be mean to Arc so he would feel the need to change things.

Reviews/critiques would be appreciated if you have time


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